HÀ NỘI — The fourth Hanoi International Film Festival (HANIFF), themed “Cinema-Integration and Sustainable Development,” will take place from November 1 to 5.

The event will present around 500 films, including more than 300 feature length films and over 200 shorts from 40 countries and territories such as India, Poland, Brazil, Colombia and South Korea.

Organised every two years, each HANIFF is an occasion to promote the Việt Nam’s cinema, people and image to international friends, according to Ngô Phương Lan, head of the Cinema Department, under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

“The festival honours excellent works and filmmakers and encourages new movie making talents,” she said.

“It enhances the co-operation between cinema industries and supports the development of world cinema.”

This year’s festival will feature three new categories, including Best Feature Length Movie, People’s Choice Feature Length Movie, and Audience’s Favourite Vietnamese Movie.

All films will be screened free of charge at the National Cinema Centre, Kim Đồng Cinema, August Cinema, Ngọc Khánh Cinema, CGV Vincom Nguyễn Chí Thanh and CGV Mipec Tower. The schedule and free tickets can be collected at the sites.

The 2016 HANIFF will include an outdoor film screening in collaboration with a Việt Nam - Italy fashion show at Cách Mạng Tháng Tám Square (in front of the Hà Nội Opera House) on November 2, 3, and 4.

The opening ceremony on November 1 and the awards ceremony on November 5 will be broadcast live on VTV2 and VTV1 channels, respectively.

Three jury boards of the HANIFF will grant awards for Feature Films, Short Films and NETPAC’s Best Films. The NETPAC Award is awarded to the best Asian feature film by a jury from the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema.

The judges includes big names of the world and local cinema such as Régis Wargnier (France), Geraldine Chaplin (US), Adoor Gopalakrishnan (India), Maria Izadora Calzado (Philippines) and Đào Bá Sơn (Việt Nam).

The fest will host workshops and talk shows focusing on Indian cinema, the co-operation between filmmakers in ASEAN countries and the integration of Vietnamese cinema to the world. — VNS

Goethe Institute programme

Within the framework of the festival, the Hà Nội Goethe Institute will present short films of Berlinale Shorts 2016 and the movie Three-Quarter. Free tickets are available from October 31 at the Goethe Institute, 56-58 Nguyễn Thái Học Street, Hà Nội.

Maike Mia Hohne, curator of the Berlinale Shorts, will introduce these short films and conduct an exchange with the audience.

On the occasion, she also presents her latest film Three-Quarter. The film deals with Sabine and Michael, who are both in their 40s living in Hamburg. Michael has a child resulting from an earlier relationship with whom Sabine gets along well, but she desires to have her own child with Michael, too. He goes along with the wish and Sabine gets pregnant – the new heart is beating and defines the rhythm. However, shortly afterwards she loses her child. When Sabine realises that Michael actually does not want a child, the couple faces a crisis.With sensitivty and honesty, Hohne portrays two people with different desires and future plans. — VNS